Fight (11 page)

16.

(Winter)

I was sick of the hideout motel
life.

Of course, Tripp slept on the floor
again. After all we
’
d been
through he still chose the floor over the bed. Wild bathroom sex aside, it didn
’
t make sense that he wouldn
’
t climb into bed with me.

He got more food, more beer, and
another day passed by.

It was close to dusk when I stood on
the balcony, looking out at the water yet again. It was tiresome to watch
people come and go. Normal people with normal lives. Even if they didn
’
t like their lives completely,
they had some kind of freedom.

Tripp wouldn
’
t tell me what he and Stoney talked about after the
fight, but it bothered him. He wasn
’
t
the same. He was taken back, angry, and he seemed paranoid.

I turned just in time to catch him
walking from the bathroom in nothing but a white towel that covered up just the
lower half of his body. He was beautiful. In my life, I
’
d never seen a man put together like Tripp. Even
clean, he had a grungy look to him. And it drove me wild.

I chose looking at him over looking
at the beach. Any sane woman would.

He grabbed jeans and went back into
the bathroom.

Just jeans.

A few seconds later he came back
out in his jeans. He grabbed a t-shirt and walked to the door.

“
Food?
”
he asked.

“
Beach.
”

“
What?
”

“
You
said we could go for a walk.
”

“
Ah,
darling,
”
he said.
“
I don
’
t know.
”

“
Tripp,
please. I
’
m almost to the
point that I
’
d rather get
out there and get shot than hide out here any longer. This doesn
’
t make any sense to me.
”

“
You
don
’
t get it,
”
Tripp said.
“
What
’
s out there.
”

“
Then
tell me. Tell me what happened with Stoney. What I should be
…”

A ball was suddenly in my throat. I
had no idea why, but I was ready to burst into tears. I lowered my head and
shook it.

A second later arms were around my
body. Tripp
’
s clean, manly
smell overtook my nose and it made me want to cry even more. I put my hands
around his body and gripped his back. I dug into his muscles.

“
Hey,
it
’
s going to be okay,
”
he said.
“
I
…
I promise you, Winter. It
’
s
going to be okay. Let me figure something out.
”

I slowly looked up at him.
“
Am I really in danger?
”

Tripp gritted his teeth.
“
At first, I wasn
’
t sure what the point was. But
now? Yeah. You
’
re in
trouble. But not when I
’
m
with you, okay?
”
He wiped a
tear off my cheek.
“
I
’
m here.
”

“
Can
we go for a walk on the beach?
”

“
Yeah.
Let
’
s go.
”

I just wanted to feel normal. I
just wanted to hold his hand, open my heart a little more.

But what I had hidden
…
no. I couldn
’
t even think about it.

~ ~ ~

It was mostly dark. We sat on a
rock, the water crashing, spraying us with cool ocean water.

Tripp was talking and my heart was
sinking by the second.

“
Do
you know the Skull X crew?
”

“
Yeah,
”
I said.
“
I mean, I
’
ve
seen them. I
’
ve never dealt
with them. I know them and the Red Aces have had some history. They like to
fight. A lot. I wouldn
’
t be
surprised if your boss was involved with them.
”

I didn
’
t mean anything by it, but Tripp jumped and stormed
away from me. He walked to the water and kicked at a wave as it slithered into
the shore. We were barefoot, walking, and any thought of something soft, sweet,
or romantic was long gone out the window.

Slowly, I approached Tripp.
“
Sorry.
”

“
Don
’
t be,
”
he said.
“
You
might be right. Maybe. I don
’
t
know what to believe anymore.
”

“
So
Stoney set all this up thinking it would get your boss down here?
”

“
Yeah,
”
Tripp said.
“
He thought Aldo would come in
and bring muscle. Even that doesn
’
t
make sense to me. Why the hell would Aldo give a damn?
”

I swallowed my answer and let Tripp
figure it out.

“
Maybe
he is involved too,
”
Tripp
said.
“
But sending me
…”
He then looked out to the
water, his face angry.
“
I
’
m just a casualty in all this. I
’
m here to check on things,
report back, and then die.
”

I reached for Tripp
’
s hand. I squeezed it.
“
No. You
’
re not going to die.
”

He ripped his hand away from me.
“
What do you know?
”
He looked at me.
“
In my business, if you lose, you
die. And
…
I lost. I lost my
last fight, darling. For what it
’
s
all worth, I should be dead right now. Trust me, I
’
ve seen it.
”

Tripp started to walk and I went
after him.
“
What do you
mean you lost?
”

He stopped.
“
I lost a fight. I was taking on some guy. I had the
fight in the bag, too. But then someone took out a gun and shot Aldo
’
s son. Almost fucking killed
him. Put him in a coma. My eyes were on the shooter, trying to figure out what
to do.
”
Tripp looked at me.
“
One second. That
’
s all it took. The other guy got
a shot on me and rocked me. The thing with fighting, darling, is that muscle
and size look nice, but a punch is a punch. The right punch to the right spot
could knock anyone out. A lot of times guys get hit and go down and it
’
s when they smack their head on
the ground, that they go out for good.
”

I could see the pain and even
embarrassment in Tripp
’
s
eyes when he spoke.

“
Hey,
you
’
re still here. With me.
”

“
I
’
m on borrowed time,
”
he said.
“
When this is done
…
I
’
m
done.
”

“
No.
I don
’
t believe that. You
’
re keeping me safe. That
’
s what you were told to do.
”

“
And
when my purpose is up, it
’
s
over. Trust me. I know Aldo.
”

“
But
if the loss wasn
’
t your
fault
…”

“
Doesn
’
t matter,
”
he said.
“
There
was money on it. Aldo is simple. Make him money, he keeps you alive. Lose him
money and he has no use for you. Believe me, you don
’
t want to meet him, get to know him, or be anything
close to him.
”

I felt bad for Tripp. I had nothing
to say because I had been living the same life. No matter what I did or where I
stepped, it was wrong, bad, and deadly. Even after Rocky was killed, any chance
of freedom was quickly taken.

My brain was processing so much at
once. I had Tripp confessing something so powerful to me just at the same time
he told me that Skull X took out Rocky and that Stoney had put a bomb in my
car, wanting to get Tripp
’
s
boss here.

“
You
’
re quiet,
”
Tripp said.

“
I
’
m in shock.
”

“
Don
’
t be. This is our life. At least
we have each other right now.
”

“
You
mean that, Tripp?
”

Tripp reached for my hand. He held
it tight and nodded.

“
I
mean it, darling.
”

Everything about Tripp oozed sex.
But in that moment, he got to my heart.

And I knew I had to tell him
everything.

17.

(Tripp)

I held her hand all the way back to
the motel. Maybe Winter was right. If we were going to get shot at and killed,
then fuck it. Let the bullets tear us apart.

Tear us apart.

Thinking as though we were
together.

I glanced at my hand locked tight
with hers and realized we were far beyond the line. This was really bad. And
Stoney had practically caught me fucking her in the bathroom.

Someone had ties with Red Aces,
Skull X, and Aldo. This shit was tied tighter than I originally thought.

When Winter got into the room, she
plopped down on the bed. I walked to our bags and grabbed them with one hand. With
my other hand, I grabbed her hand and made her stand back up.

“
Tripp
…”

“
We
’
re going back to your place,
”
he said.
“
I
’
m
done being here. I
’
m not
going to be afraid. I
’
ll
fucking take on the Red Aces myself if I have to.
”

I expected her to fight me on it.

But she didn
’
t. She nodded.

“
Yes,
”
she whispered.
“
There
’
s something I want to show you. Something
…
it
’
s private, Tripp.
”

“
Okay.
”
I touched her face.
“
What is it?
”

“
It
’
s bad.
”

“
Bad?
”

“
Yeah.
Bad. I
’
m worried you
’
ll judge me. You
’
ll leave me.
”

I gritted my teeth.
Don
’
t
say
you
’
ll never leave her, man.
That
’
s not
what this thing is. It
’
s
not a fucking movie or something.

“
I
’
m not going to judge you,
darling. If you think it has anything to do with what
’
s going on
…”

“
What
if it doesn
’
t?
”

“
Then
why would you tell me?
”

“
Because
I trust you. Because I want you to see what it
’
s
like for me.
”

“
What
does that mean?
”

I saw the hurt wash over her pretty
face. Her blue eyes weren
’
t
quite as bright as before.
“
It
’
s just stuff. Stuff Rocky used
to hold against me. Why I
’
m
stuck.
”

Jesus, she was terrified, almost
shaking now.

“
Okay,
”
I said. I kissed her forehead.
“
It
’
s
okay. Let
’
s get out of
here. I
’
ll protect you.
”

Part of me was talking out of my
ass. I couldn
’
t really
protect Winter, could I? The best I could do was offer my life. And if this
Skull X group wanted her, they
’
d
kill me and get her.

Fuck, the thought shook me to my
core.

We got to my car. I started it,
half expecting it to blow up.

It didn
’
t.

We drove to her place without any
incident. The same as when we got inside, which I did first. Again, there was
no winning because if someone was there to kill me, that left Winter all for
the taking.

I remembered Skull X hadn
’
t been here though. Whatever
happened with Rocky they had acted upon and had kept quiet since. Maybe Aldo
was involved and keeping them at bay. Or maybe something was waiting for me
tomorrow.

I locked the door and Winter went
right for a drink. We had a few beers left in the fridge. Not enough to get
drunk, but enough for a taste. She opened me a beer, gave it to me, and I
grabbed her arm.

“
Show
me right now,
”
I said.

Her face dropped again as she
nodded.
“
Okay.
”

Winter led the way to her bedroom.
The second she opened the door, my body tightened. My cock pressed against my
jeans, already thickening. It was wild what this woman did to me. Christ, it
was a bedroom. It wasn
’
t
like she was naked.

The room smelled of her. It smelled
of blankets and a sleep smell.

There was a dresser across from a
wide bed. The sheets were black with red trim. It was kind of girlie, dark and
pretty. I shut the door and looked around the room. There were some clothes on
the floor, a pink thong showing. I walked to it and kicked the clothes, covering
it up. It would have driven me damn crazy.

Winter put her beer on the dresser
and went to the closet. She opened it and stepped inside. A light flicked on
and she crouched down. I stepped up behind her, watching her shirt pull up her
back. The bones and curve of her spine pushed from her back, her black panties
showing a thin line.

Everything about her turned me on.

I wanted to protect more than just what
was around me.

Christ, was I actually starting to
have feelings for her?

Winter slithered back out of the
closet and had a box in her hand. An old, maroon colored shoebox.

“
This,
”
she whispered.

“
What
is it?
”

“
Pictures.
”

“
Of?
”

“
Me.
”

My heart sank a little. I crouched
down and saw her eyes were already filled with tears.

“
What
kind of pictures?
”

She turned her head and took off
the lid.

The pictures were in a messy pile.
But they were all pretty simple.

Topless pictures of Winter.

I grabbed a small stack and flipped
through them.

Each picture she was in a different
pose. Starting to take her clothes off, bending over with her tits pressing
against her bra, then her bra on the ground, hands covering her nipples.
Topless pictures followed. Winter touching, cupping, playing. Even a couple
pictures of Winter tasting herself.

I threw them down and didn
’
t want to see anything else.

“
What
is this?
”
I asked.

“
Just
pictures. They
’
d come in
and shut the place down. They
’
d
demand we take pictures. The owner went along with it. It was money, Tripp. It
was harmless, I thought. But Rocky wanted more and more and more. He loved
taking pictures and keeping them.
”

“
For
what reason? Blackmail?
”

“
I
was a stripper,
”
Winter
said.
“
Anyone could have
seen me
…”

Jealousy flooded my body.

He stood up and kicked at the box.
“
That
’
s what you were worried about? Topless pictures? Is
there more?
”

“
Sort
of,
”
she whispered.

“
What?
You and some guys fucking?
”

“
No!
”
Winter cried out.
“
They did that with some women,
but not me. I refused. As long as Rocky could take pictures, he was happy. It
was a horrible way to try and feel safe.
”

“
Yeah,
real fucking safe.
”

“
I
always wanted to burn them,
”
she said.
“
Just burn them
all. But he would never
…”

“
He
’
s dead.
”

“
Yeah,
he is.
”

I turned and stormed from the room.
Winter called my name, but I had to get away, again. Each twist and turn with
her made me want to scream. Christ, it was so tempting to just get in my car
and go. For real this time. Let Aldo track me down.

Instead, I started to open drawers.
There had been candles on the coffee table in the living room, which meant
there had to be a lighter somewhere. I found one in a junk drawer and grabbed a
heavy duty glass bowl from one of the cabinets.

I returned to the room and sat
down.

“
Do
it then,
”
I said to Winter.
“
Start burning them.
”

I watched as she collected a few of
the pictures and put them in the bowl. She clicked the lighter and they caught.
The flames ate the pictures right up. I grabbed a few and put them into the
dying flames, keeping them alive. I couldn
’
t
help myself as I stared at a few of them though.

Christ, she was really pretty. I
mean beyond looking at her perfect big tits and everything. Her eyes, her face,
her hair. Even her smile in some of the pictures.

I turned one around.
“
You seemed happy here.
”

Winter had her hands in her hair,
pulling it back, smiling. Completely damn topless.

“
I
was probably drunk,
”
she
said.
“
Burn it.
”

I brought it back to me.
“
I
’
ll
keep it for myself then.
”

“
No,
”
she growled. She grabbed the
picture from me and dropped it into the fire. She then inched closer and kissed
my cheek.
“
I
’
ll give you a live picture
later.
”

Good hell.

A woman teasing me and I enjoyed
it. Hell, this was the closest thing I had to a date in longer than I cared to
remember. And the date was setting pictures on fire. Forced pictures that were
taken of Winter. It was wrong and it pissed me off, but there was nothing I
could do about it.

As the stack dwindled, Winter
seemed to ease a little. She really thought I was going to get mad at her for
this. Yeah, sure, I was mad, but not at her. I didn
’
t know Winter when all this happened. If I had, she
would have never lived this kind of life.

What kind of life then?

That question felt like a punch to
the gut. I had no way of giving Winter a better life, did I? I had a small
apartment in a building that got raided once a week. I was at the mercy of
Aldo. When he needed me to fight, I had to fight. And nobody is perfect. I
’
d never get a chance to lose
again. Hell, for all I knew, when this protection thing ended Aldo would kill
me.

I grabbed another small stack of
pictures but looked at Winter instead of the pictures.

“
What?
”
she asked.

“
I
’
m really damn sorry all this
happened to you,
”
I said.
“
I mean, for everything.
”
I shook the pictures.
“
This stuff. You feeling trapped.
Being trapped. Stuck with me. What happened in that motel room and bathroom
…
it shouldn
’
t have.
”

“
You
can
’
t say that,
”
Winter said.
“
I wanted it. Both times. I was
begging for it. I needed it, Tripp. Don
’
t
you get that?
”

“
You
were lonely.
”

“
You
were there.
”

I shook my head.
“
Yeah, I was there. But I can
’
t promise that tomorrow. Or a
week after that.
”

“
Nobody
can.
”
Winter reached for my
hand.
“
Please finish
burning these. Because there
’
s
something else I want you to see. I
’
m
scared, Tripp.
”

“
Don
’
t be,
”
I said.
“
Let
’
s just get through this and try
to enjoy the night together. Let everything happen tomorrow.
”

“
I
like that.
”

“
I
…
I like you, darling.
”

As if I couldn
’
t cross anymore lines.

I started to flick the pictures
into the fire like a fast card dealer. With two left in my hand, I dropped one
down and hurried to grab it.

I jumped back and got to my feet.

“
Who
the fuck is this?
”
I
growled.

I showed Winter the picture and her
face turned white.
“
Tripp
…”

“
No
way. You know who this is?
”

Winter didn
’
t respond.

“
Goddammit,
darling,
”
I said.
“
You better not choose right now
to start lying to me.
”